As evidenced by all the leaked pictures of the Radeon HD 5830, each vendor gave its HD 5830 its own distinctive look. The latest rumours suggest that ATI have indeed given AIB partners full freedom to create their own reference design, right at launch.

This comes as a stark contrast to recent criticism that ATI were pegging AIB partners with strict limits on non-reference designs. We haven’t seen pictures of boxed HD 5830 with a reference design. In fact, even in the presentation slide, the picture of the HD 5830 has been blanked out.

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As evidenced by all the leaked pictures of the Radeon HD 5830, each vendor gave its HD 5830 its own distinctive look. The latest rumours suggest that ATI have indeed given AIB partners full freedom to create their own reference design, right at launch.

This comes as a stark contrast to recent criticism that ATI were pegging AIB partners with strict limits on non-reference designs. We haven’t seen pictures of boxed HD 5830 with a reference design. In fact, even in the presentation slide, the picture of the HD 5830 has been blanked out.

Obviously, ATI feels that, by now, the partners have a good grasp of the Cypress GPU, and have allowed them greater freedom, right at release date.

What this means for the consumers is a whole new range of products to choose from. Whether it be Sapphire’s Vapor-X, Powercolor’s PCS, or something simpler, consumers get far more choice. It also allows the AIB vendors a chance at distinguishing their products. Now, it can work both ways, as the consumer might have a bit too much choice. Gone are the days where you would simply want a “Radeon HD 5830″ – this time it is a choice between a Sapphire Vapor-X 5830, or a Powercolor PCS Radeon HD 5830, and so on… It could also create some confusion for reviewers, as this is not one product they are reviewing – but several.

While rumours are rumours, there’s strong credibility to this particular one. It is certainly a welcome change, and it will be interesting to see how the GPU world reacts.